May 1998 IN THIS ISSUE:
Windows 3.X programs in Windows 95 Use .BMP files as Icons Hard Drive maintenance Refresh or Reload? Email files quickly Top and Bottom More Windows 95 Tips How to save a web page Quick Viewer Quick History FEATURE STORY: Cookies and Your Privacy ...also... For MAC eyes only! Organize your Favorite and Bookmark files Liver anyone? Fast Facts Fill'er up and check the oil "Should I stay or should I go now?" Virus Shmirus! Urgent Email Whistle while you work: Radio on the Net Search Engine for Small Business The sites referred to in this newsletter are only a few of the thousands that exist on any specific topic. We suggest these few, simply to GET YOU STARTED. Future issues of this newsletter may revisit related noteworthy sites. 1. Windows 3.X programs in Windows 95 If your current Windows 95 operating system was an upgrade from Windows 3.X then you might find this useful. MKCOMPAT.EXE is a program in the /windows/system directory that will allow you to change settings to try to make Win 3.x programs compatible with Windows 95. Run the program if you've been noticing that 3.X applications don't run like they used to. Back to Table of Contents 2. Use .BMP files as Icons If you rename a .BMP file to .ICO, you can use it as an icon! Windows 95 will resize it and change it to 16 colors. Create your own bitmaps using your favorite graphics or drawing program and then save them as icons. If you have children, they'll love this! Back to Table of Contents 3. Hard Drive maintenance Whether you're surfing the net, creating documents or graphics, everything you do on your computer gives your hard drive a real workout. Your computer is constantly creating and deleting files just about every time you use it. Regular maintenance of your hard drive will improve it's performance. Follow these steps: click Start/Programs/Accessories/System Tools/ScanDisk. For best results, use the Advanced options. When Scandisk is finished go back and Defragment your drive. If you haven't done this before, don't worry, it's simple and you'll find plenty of information before you start. Back to Table of Contents 4. Refresh or Reload? What's the difference? There's a big difference. If you use Netscape, Refresh will simply fetch the web page from the cache folder (every time you visit a site, a copy is kept in this folder). This could be a very dated version of the page. If you select Reload, Netscape will return to the server where the original site is located and return the latest version of the page contents. Use the Reload option for sites that are constantly being updated with new information that you need. If you use Internet Explorer the Refresh button will do the same thing. Back to Table of Contents 5. Email files quickly Windows 95 allows you to email various types of files as attachments. In Windows Explorer, just select the file or files you want to send by right-clicking them with your mouse. A pop-down menu will appear and you can select Send To/Mail Recipient. A new email message will be created with the file(s) as an attachment. This will happen even if your email software is not open at the time. Back to Table of Contents 6. Top and Bottom Some web pages can be rather lengthy and may require time consuming scrolling. To quickly get to the bottom of a page simply press Ctrl + End. This can be handy since some pages place the site index at the bottom. To quickly return to the top, you guessed it...Ctrl + Home. This will work on just about every computer. Back to Table of Contents 7. More Windows 95 Tips Want more tips? Look in the your Windows folder. Find a file called tips.txt and double-click it. This document contains a collection of additional helpful hints and tips that will get you one step closer to mastering Windows 95. Back to Table of Contents 8. How to save a web page Here are two quick and simple ways to save a web page for later viewing. When you find a page you want to save, from the File menu, select Save As. Give it a name you'll remember and use the .html or .htm extension after the file name. This will allow you to view the file on your browser while off-line. Unfortunately graphics will not be saved. The alternative is to save it as a text file using the .txt file name extension. This will allow you to view the text on the web page in any word processor or text editor. If the text is a graphic image like a logo, you won't be able to view it. Back to Table of Contents 9. Quick Viewer Did you know you can take a quick peek at a document without opening its parent application? Just right-click your document in Windows Explorer or My Computer and select Quick View. If the document type is supported, the Quick Viewer application will open it. Back to Table of Contents 10. Quick History Whether you run Netscape or Internet Explorer (Windows or MacOS) the browsers automatically save a current history of where you've been on the web. To quickly view it simply press Ctrl-H on your keyboard. The Mac method is Command-H. This quick reference can be handy if you don't want to cycle back using the 'Back' button to revisit a site. Back to Table of Contents FEATURE: Cookies and Your Privacy Those of you that are new to the internet experience, may not be aware that you may be collecting an inventory of little text files called cookies, whenever you surf the web. The ever increasing controversy over the usefulness versus the intrusiveness of cookies doesn't seem to be subsiding. What exactly is a cookie and why are they used? A cookie is a text-string or file that is placed in your web browser's memory when you visit websites that want to collect information about you. Not all sites use them though. A cookie file can contain a wide range of information about you and your web-surfing habits. Originally, they were designed to make accessing certain sites more easily. For example, upon your first visit to a site you many have been asked to provide your name, address, username, password, etc. in order to gain access. This information would be copied and placed in a cookie file on your computer. Upon subsequent visits, the site's server would read the information and allow you access without having to re-type your information. In essence the cookie was designed to be a 'key' that would determine whether or not you had authorization to enter and to let you in to certain sites. Search engines like Yahoo and Excite, as well as personal and corporate websites place cookies on your hard drive to record your preferences and interests. This helps them keep content fresh and relevant to your interests. However convenient this may be, unscrupulous marketers and programmers have been able to use cookies in a different manner. These carefully written files can be used to track your movements through the web. They can be designed to develop profiles of your surfing habits, spending patterns, preferences, etc.. Many believe they are intrusive and an invasion of your privacy. That being said, a cookie cannot read the contents of your hard drive or find out how much you earn, where you live or how many children you have. The only really personal information that is placed in a cookie, is information that you 'volunteer' when you fill out a form on a website. Contests, sweepstakes, files and programs that you download may require you to provide such information. Ever wonder how someone got your email address and is sending you all kinds of spam(junk email)? It could be information from a cookie that was created when you visited a site. If you're concerned about this, fret not, there are a few things you can do to prevent it. First, some web browsers will allow you to set your preferences to not accept cookies (depending on the version of your browser, the procedure may vary slightly). In Netscape this can be done through the Options/Network/Preferences/Protocols menu. If you're using Internet Explorer get to the Internet Options/Advanced menu. Configuring your browser will notify you of any incoming cookies. You can then decide if you want to accept or reject them. Remember, some cookies are not too intrusive and can be helpful, as described above. Reject the ones you don't want. Netscape 4.0 and Internet Explorer 4.0 will allow you to accept all, some, or none of any incoming cookies. Investigate what options your browser offers and set your preferences. The second and most drastic option, is to delete the cookie files from your hard drive. Do this regularly if you have concerns. If you are using a Netscape or Internet Explorer browser, look for a file called 'cookies.txt' or 'emcookies.txt' in the browser's folder. For Mac users the file should be called 'MagicCookie'. If you have difficulties finding them, simply use the Find feature to locate and delete them. Don't forget to close your browser first, as cookies are held in memory until your browser is closed. Once a cookie is rejected or deleted, it is thrown out and not saved to memory or disk. Don't forget though, that servers will keep looking for the cookie even if you have discarded it and may try to replace it as you continue browsing the web. If you want to learn more about cookies, try the links below or search the web for more information using your favorite search engine. There is certainly no shortage of information about this topic. Make sure you are making informed decisions. Cookie Resources: http://home.bmi.net/rubenb/cookies.htm http://gv.itouch.net/cookies.htm http://www.cybergrrl.com/whycookies.html http://www.epic.org/privacy/cookies/default.html (This last site offers a link to some other interesting resources. Look for the Practical Privacy Tools link at the bottom of first page on the site.) Back to Table of Contents For MAC eyes only! If you're a MAC user then we're positive you'll want to bookmark this site. Macinsearch.com is one of the most comprehensive resources you'll find for MAC products, services and sites that support Macintosh. This incredible full text search engine has over 23,000 links to MAC only sites. Categories include business, hardware, software, people, news and indices. You'll also find a comprehensive directory of Shareware files covering everything from applications, art, development, education, fonts, games, graphics, viruses and more. You can even subscribe to the Macintosh mailing list and free magazines. So grab an apple and get ready for some healthy and nutritious surfing. Back to Table of Contents Organize your Favorite and Bookmark files Here's a nifty program for you savvy surfers and bookmark addicts. The QuikLink Explorer will help you organize your bookmarks, favorites, hotlists, URLs, email addresses, ftp sites, program shortcuts and more! Those of you who have amassed a huge collection of favorite sites will really appreciate this cleverly designed software. It takes on the appearance and functionality of Windows Explorer, with which you might already be familiar. Just like with Explorer, you can organize your favorite sites in folders. One for your favorite search engines, one for games, another for education, etc. QuikLink allows you to cut, copy, paste and even drag-and-drop. The software will also import your existing bookmark or favorite files so you don't lose them. Another handy feature is it's ability to let you associate sites with specific browsers, so you can take advantage of sites that are enhanced for use with that browser. The download is FREE. And for you Net junkies, you can of course purchase the Gold edition. Back to Table of Contents Liver anyone? You've heard of the wildly popular Celtic dance show called Riverdance. We'll now you can get a personal encore performance right on your desktop...sort of. How about Liverdance instead? That's right Liverdance! Download the Liverdance Screen Saver and watch a troupe of Irish livers, clad in Celtic vests perform precision step dancing. It gets better. As the screen saver opens an assortment of livers fall from nowhere and land in lifeless mess. Then suddenly they come to life, growing eyes, arms and legs as they tap to the snappy Celtic rhythms. You'll need Windows 3.1 or better to witness this animated anatomy. It's free but you can also purchase a longer rendition for about $9.00US. That's about the price of a Liver & Onions diner at your favorite restaurant (without live entertainment of course). Back to Table of Contents Fast Facts Trying to spice up a presentation? How about that dreaded term paper? Or what if your 10 year old asks you how may earth years it takes to get to Jupiter. Do you know the answer? Find the facts fast with this incredibly comprehensive resource. InfoPlease is your one-stop almanac, dictionary and encyclopedia. Quickly search for information of all kinds, from that name that's on the tip of your tongue to the most obscure facts that you thought you'd never need. Search in over 50 categories ranging from Architecture, Countries, World Stats, Current Events, Headline History, Sports, Who's Who in Business, People, Movies, Books/ Magazines, Consumer Resources, Personal Finance, Health, First Aid, Discoveries and much, much more. This site quickly and amazingly brings the world to your fingertips. Back to Table of Contents Fill'er up and check the oil Here's a handy resource for web site owners and developers. Stop by the Web Site Garage for a free site tune up. This cybermechanic site will perform 7 free diagnostics on your home page. If you're a do-it-yourselfer, you can use the Turbocharge Self Service tools. If you want to announce your internet presence, you can register your site with 16 search engines in just a few minutes. Are your graphics in tip-top shape? Get a GIF Lube. Don't have any meta tags, use the META Tag Generator. You can even get a screenshot of your site on various browsers and platforms. Peel over to this handy site and check out some of the additional tools you can use to get started on your high performance web site. On your mark....get set....GO! Back to Table of Contents "Should I stay or should I go now?" Not happy with your job? Fed up with cold winters, 3 feet of snow, hurricanes and high taxes? Ever thought about packing up and moving to greener pastures? If you answered yes to any of these questions check out the International Salary Calculator. What would you have to earn in a new city or country to maintain or improve your standard of living and quality of life? Just type in your current salary, the city you live in, and the city you want to move to. The quick calculator will search a database of inflation rates for various goods and services in your dream city, then return what you'd have to earn to maintain your current standard of living. Paris, Milan, New York.....no one said you couldn't dream a little. All kidding aside, this resource can be invaluable if you've been considering a move. The site also offers some additional tools and resources that will help you make informed decisions about where you might move. Learn about crime rates, taxes and get profiles of your selected cities. Don't pack your bags yet. Get the facts first. Back to Table of Contents Virus Shmirus! One of the unfortunate realities about the internet and this wonderful new technology, is the inevitability that some day your computer will be infected by a virus. Knowing how to protect yourself from the thousands of strains that exist should be a priority. Knowing which ones are real and which ones are hoaxes is also important. Yes, some viruses are hoaxes. For example you cannot get a virus via email (unless an 'attached' program is infected by one). You should seriously take some time and visit the resources below. Protect your investment and your sanity. Virus Resources: http://www.umich.edu/~wwwitd/virus-busters/index.html http://www.nai.com/services/support/hoax/hoax.asp http://www.kumite.com/myths/ http://www.virusbtn.com/Welcome.html http://search.zdnet.com/pcmag/iu/toolkit/virus.htm http://www.av.ibm.com/BreakingNews/HypeAlert/ Most anti-virus makers not only have information on viruses, but also offer free evaluation copies of their software: http://www.drsolomons.com/vircen (Dr Solomon) http://www.networkassociate.com/ (formerly McAfee) http://www.symantec.com/avcenter/vinfodb.html (Symantec) http://www.datafellows.com/news/hoax.htm (Data Fellows) Back to Table of Contents Urgent Email Expecting an important email communication? Don't have the time to wait around your computer all day to receive it. Whether you use email for business or pleasure, you might want to check out this new service. MailPush will notify you 'off-line', any time you receive a new email message. You can set your preferences in many different ways to customize the service. When that urgent message arrives, MailPush can notify you via your cellular phone, a regular land line phone, by fax and even via paging devices. Simply download the software and follow the setup instructions. It can be configured to call you and read you the header of the message or fax you the mail in it's entirety. If you use a pager the header will be sent. You can even call in 24 hours a day to check for messages and even filter unwanted mail. Try it. You have nothing to lose since the first month is FREE. Back to Table of Contents Whistle while you work: Radio on the Net If you can listen to CDs on you computer then why not radio! Tired of the same old local radio stations? Want to hear what the rest of the world is listening to? Then click over to The MIT List of Radio Stations on the Internet. Here you'll find over 4000 radio stations from around the globe. You can search for stations by frequency, state, province, or country. You'll also find a direct link to 'Bitcasters' (stations that broadcast their signal on the internet). If you want to try a different format, you'll find stations for adult album alternative, jazz, sports, big band, religious, college radio and more. In the mood for Flamenco? Try Cadena 100 - 99.5 FM live from Madrid, Spain. Want to brush up on some belly-dancing? Try Ato Cyber Radio live from Ankara, Turkey. Or if you liked the Liverdance screensaver (above) try 2FM Dublin - 90-92 FM from Dublin, Ireland. The world is truly getting smaller. Back to Table of Contents Search Engine for Small Business We spotted this press release recently and thought it might be of interest to you entrepreneurial types out there. It is reproduced it in it's entirety below: For Immediate Release - CONTACT: Steve Derezinski maitlo:steve@cxweb.com Phone: (404) 881-6630 EST For Small Businesses at SBFocus.com Engine Indexes Only Sites Related To Operating A Small Business ATLANTA, GA /URLwire/ -- Small business owners and entrepreneurs have a new Internet tool for searches. SBFocus.com by CXWeb, Inc. is a search engine designed specifically for access to the information needed to run a small business. By indexing only sites with high quality content, both well-known and lesser known, into one convenient search engine, SBFocus gets better results in less time without the need to learn any "search engine language" such as boolean logic. Who might use this search engine? Owners, managers, CEOs, CFOs and CIOs of small businesses, or anyone who needs business information and lacks the internal resources to find that information. As all on-line business owners know, a simple web-wide query will return millions of matches. And visiting each site to do a site-specific query is inefficient. Wouldn't it be better to query all the best business information sites simultaneously? With SBFocus.com, the results are more focused and relevant. For example, a search for "Bank Loans" on Yahoo -- the Internet's most popular directory -- yielded everything from international bank loan sites to lists of banks, whereas a search on SBFocus.com yielded articles on how to prepare for loans, articles on selecting a bank, and articles on alternative sources for loans. To help illustrate this, the company has setup a live query at http://www.sbfocus.com/compare for visitors to see the differences. CXWeb, Inc. the parent company of SBFocus.com is constantly researching high quality sites to include in its search engine. They encourage users to nominate their favorite resource of small business information for inclusion. Sites must show good quality content, ease of navigation, and frequent updates to be included in SBFocus.com. Sites that use spamdexing techniques to obtain higher search rankings are immediately disqualified. SBFocus.com is committed to customer service and aims to be the first stop for business information searches. When you start a query at SBFocus.com, there are links to other popular search engines at the bottom of every page that automatically query the named search engine for its results. Some queries may require searching the entire web. As another example of its emphasis on customer service, SBFocus.com also refreshes the content more often than other search engines, minimizing the chances for a dead link or missing information. CXWeb, Inc. is a Georgia Corporation based in Atlanta, GA and founded in 1997 to develop business-to-business Internet and web-services targeted at small businesses. For more information on the parent company, visit its website: http://www.cxweb.com ###/URLwire - Eric Ward/ Back to Table of Contents 'Til next month... |
